Zombies are coming back to Georgia | Business

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SENOIA, Ga. -- It's pretty clear that zombies like the state of Georgia. If you watch "The Walking Dead" you have seen several Georgia locations where the popular television series was shot.

Now it appears that season three of the AMC hit will be shot here too. One Georgia city with a Hollywood-like reputation will benefit most. The city of Senoia has been told by the show's location manager that most of the upcoming season will be shot there.

The city's Main Street will be the main set for when the show starts shooting on May 31, 2012. Cast and crew could be in Senoia until November. "We've gotten used to how to direct traffic, how to deal with businesses," the city's Director of Downtown Development Scott Tigchelaar said.

Imagine downtown Senoia as the center of a walled city, a sanctuary from a zombie apocalypse. That's the only hint city officials have been given about what will take place in Senoia.

If you walk down Main Street and look down at the sidewalk, your steps are marked by plaques of some of the dozen or so movie and television projects that have been filmed here.

Some of the more popular films are "Driving Miss Daisy", "Fried Green Tomatoes", "Andersonville", "Sweet Home Alabama", "Broken Bridges" and "Footloose".

Tigchelaar said Senoia's commitment to these projects has helped it get through a tough economy, unlike other Georgia cities and towns. "Probably the last five or six years have been the toughest economy any of us have ever seen," he said. "But for this town, we've gone from six businesses on Main Street to 45 businesses on Main Street."

Gail Downs owns Gail's Antiques. Her store is littered with mementos of the stars who have visited her shop. She said the Hollywood invasion of Senoia has been good for business. "Especially in the antiques business because we have a lot of people that come in when they're filming the movies and they're looking for props," she said.

She's looking forward to the summer shoot. "It's going to be huge and bring lots and lots of people," she said.

Parts of the first two seasons of "The Walking Dead" were shot in Senoia. Mike Riley, the show's location manager, told city council members, "Senoia will be a major set for next season."